India and France promised “ground-breaking” joint military projects as Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrapped up a state visit that was rich both in symbolism and promises.
There was no word on the widely-expected sale of 26 French-built Rafale jets to India as Modi and President Emmanuel Macron held talks in Paris.
In a statement the two sides said they welcomed a decision to build three French-designed Scorpene submarines as well as Safran helicopter engines in India.
“These ventures are in line with the spirit of trust that prevails between India and France,” it said, adding the two sides will also support the joint development of a combat aircraft engine.
"In the future, India and France will extend their ground-breaking defence cooperation in advanced aeronautical technologies by supporting the joint development of a combat aircraft engine," it added.
“Another such example is the memorandum of understanding between (India’s) Garden Reach Shipbuilders Ltd and Naval Group France to collaborate in the field of surface ships that cater to fulfil the requirement of India and international naval forces.”
"To this end, both countries are also working towards adopting a roadmap on defence industrial cooperation," it added as Modi-wrapped up a two-day visit.
France also eased visa rules for Indian students and approved an app-based payments system for visitors enabling them to spend in rupee in France in line with a plethora of goodwill gestures during Modi’s time in Paris.
Macron awarded Modi the grand cross of the Legion of Honour, the country's top order of merit, which he hailed as "an honour for the 1.4 billion residents of India".
“May the bond deepen even further!” tweeted Modi who was invited as guest of honour to Friday’s Bastille Day parade as a token to mark the 25th anniversary of strategic partnership this year.
Ahead of Modi’s trip, India had confirmed the purchase of 26 maritime Rafales and the three Scorpene submarines, which will join five such units already built in India with a sixth scheduled to be launched soon.
India bought 36 Rafales for eight billion Euros in 2016. Three of them participated in Friday’s Bastille Day flypast.
Looking beyond
Analysts say India was looking beyond buyer-seller ties for the development of military technologies while France hoped such contracts would generate local jobs.
“Today we are two countries that work as equal partners, satellite launches, communications and increasingly making our space more secure,” said Jawed Ashraf, India’s ambassador in France.
Kwatra’s comment coincided with Friday’s launch of a space rocket that marked India’s second attempt since 2019 to land on the moon.
India shines bright!
— Nitin Gadkari (@nitin_gadkari) July 14, 2023
A memorable day for every Indian! #JayHind#Chandrayaan3 #BastilleDayParade #BastilleDay2023 pic.twitter.com/Y6n1QOTpz9
Indian Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra added that Modi was in pursuit of steps to further shore up Asia’s third largest economy.
Business ties
“Economic ties …has been on robust upswing (and) spans across not just the conventional areas of trade, industry investment cooperation but is also increasingly focused on the new and emerging domains including start-up technology and space economy,” he said.
My remarks at the CEO Forum in Paris. https://t.co/yl9tVVOLr3
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 14, 2023
France last year edged past the US to become India’s second largest arms supplier, accounting for 29 percent of its hardware imports.
France’s energy firm EDF is also negotiating to sell six nuclear reactors to India while rail company Alstom hopes to boost business in India.
Trade between the two countries is pegged at €25 billion in 2022 – a figure that had initially been a target to be reached by 2025.
Airbus last month announced grabbing the biggest-ever aircraft order in the history of commercial aviation to deliver 500 A320 planes to India’s IndiGo airline between 2030 and 2035.
It took to 1,330 the number of Airbus planes Indigo had ordered from the French aerospace giant.
